Ashamin

Even before the howling, Ashamin would have known they were there. Rakt had been roaming the woods of the falls and seen Romina. Having the same feet as the child, and magic to speed himself further, Rakt was by Ashamin's side before Hotaru's companion could alight the sky with her fire. Alice's call was simply a way to ensure that when Ashamin arrived, he and his companions feel a little less than comfortable. The Hellhound may have belong to his lover, may have always proven to be an ally, but wolfsong would always put the Clovenheart on edge.

Lochan elected to stay back by their things and continue his daily rest, but Ashamin arrived with Rakt in tow and a wide smile on his features. His daughter had come to see him; how could he show any different expression?

"Romina," he murmured, her name a mere breath as it slipped from his lips. "I have missed you, my sweet daughter," Ashamin told her with all the love he'd promisedbefore. He stepped towards her on similarly cleft hooves, his long tail waving like a banner as he approached his only baby girl. She would always be his baby girl, born to the one living soul who loved him most.

He could have thought of Rexanna then, if not for the love so evident and breathing before him. Romina was beautiful and young, a dainty thing more fawn than filly but precious nonetheless. He had worried some for her fate in the Basin, a herd not known for its acceptance of other types, but she did not seem to come to him now in distress. That, at least, was a blessing. Besides, with Hotaru to watch over the twins he doubted anyone would really give his children trouble. The Basin may have hosted its fair share of cruelty, but they were always respectful to their Lady and Lord.

"How have you fared? And your mother, and Ru'in?" Ashamin asked with earnest as he moved to press his cheek to hers, to breathe comfort into the soft and short tresses along her neck. Even her smell was something he could love, could hold onto in the moments when he felt most alone. From where he stood he cast a quick glance at Alice, granted her a steady blink. It was a thank you for guiding his child, one he hoped the Hellhound would understand.

Rakt so rarely showed affection, but it seemed that even he was too charmed by his bondmate's daughter to suppress his hidden kindness. The red cerndyr lowed a delicate hello and shook his antlers towards Romina, as if trying to indicate the same ones that budded from her brow. The Blood was partial to the Clovenheart's daughter, for the cervid aspects of her being made her undeniably kin. Sometimes, when Ashamin and his companions spoke to each other in the night, they would talk of the children he'd left behind. They would exchange, in later unacknowledged moments, a shared absence in their hearts and then move on. They had to; how else would they survive in the wild, and how else would they stop themselves from returning to the home they'd left?

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The Clovenheart